9279 results about "Materials processing" patented technology

Various embodiments may be used for laser-based modification of target material of a workpiece while advantageously achieving improvements in processing throughput and/or quality. Embodiments of a method of processing may include focusing and directing laser pulses to a region of the workpiece at a pulse repetition rate sufficiently high so that material is efficiently removed from the region and a quantity of unwanted material within the region, proximate to the region, or both is reduced relative to a quantity obtainable at a lower repetition rate. In at least one embodiment, an ultrashort pulse laser system may include at least one of a fiber amplifier or fiber laser. Various embodiments are suitable for at least one of dicing, cutting, scribing, and forming features on or within a semiconductor substrate. Workpiece materials may also include metals, inorganic or organic dielectrics, or any material to be micromachined with femtosecond and/or picosecond pulses, and in some embodiments with pulse widths up to a few nanoseconds.

The present invention relates to a method for closed-loop controlling a processing operation of a workpiece, comprising the steps of: (a) recording a pixel image at an initial time point of an interaction zone by means of a camera, wherein the workpiece is processed using an actuator having an initial actuator value; (b) converting the pixel image into a pixel vector; (c) representing the pixel vector by a sum of predetermined pixel mappings each multiplied by a corresponding feature value; (d) classifying the set of feature values on the basis of learned feature values into at least two classes of a group of classes comprising a first class of a too high actuator value, a second class of a sufficient actuator value and a third class of a too low actuator value at the initial time point; (e) performing a control step for adapting the actuator value by minimizing the error e_t between a quality indicator y_e and a desired value; and (f) repeating the steps (a) to (e) for further time points to perform a closed-loop controlled processing operation.

An Agile-Beam Laser Array Transmitter (ABLAT) uses an array of emitters and an array of lenses to project electromagnetic beams over a wide angular coverage area in the far field. Differences in the separation pitches of the two arrays allows the ABLAT to project beams to contiguous and/or overlapping positions, depending on the ratio of the separation pitches and the lens focal length. Compared to other beam steering technology, the ABLAT is a smaller, lighter, and more efficient means of projecting beams over wider angular coverage areas. Various embodiments can be used in any beam steering application, including, but not limited to: free-space optical communications; light detection and ranging (lidar); optical scanning (e.g., retinal or bar-code scanning); display projection; image capture; optical character recognition; scanning laser microscopy; non-destructive testing; printing; facsimiles; map making; web inspection; color print processing; phototypesetting and platemaking; laser marking; material processing; DNA analysis; and drug discovery.

The invention provides a processing method of titanium and titanium alloy strip coils, which comprises the steps of raw material preparation, heating, rolling, annealing, shot blasting treatment, coping, pickling, cold rolling, derosination, annealing, straightening or flattening, edge scraping, and product obtaining. According to the method, existing large steel rolling equipment of various types in the steel processing industry is fully utilized, the defect that no titanium material surface processing and treatment technology exists in the steel processing industry is overcome, the advantages of the steel processing industry are combined with the uniqueness of the titanium material processing industry, and the essential leap of titanium material processing from single plate rolling to long strip rolling plus collection and coiling is completed. By using the method, goods can be delivered in a coiled state as well as a flat plate state, the titanium material processing efficiency is improved, the titanium material processing yield is increased, and conditions are created and high quality raw materials are provided for the processing of titanium welded pipes with various diametersand longer lengths, so high efficiency, energy conservation and economization of titanium material processing are realized.

Methods and systems for laser-based processing of materials are disclosed wherein a scalable laser architecture, based on planar waveguide technology, provides for pulsed laser micromachining applications while supporting higher average power applications like laser welding and cutting. Various embodiments relate to improvements in planar waveguide technology which provide for stable operation at high powers with a reduction in spurious outputs and thermal effects. At least one embodiment provides for micromachining with pulsewidths in the range of femtoseconds to nanoseconds. In another embodiment, 100W or greater average output power operation is provided for with a diode-pumped, planar waveguide architecture.

A directly diode-pumped amplifier system is disclosed which produces sub-picosecond pulses with an output power of 2 watts or more. Computer resources are coupled to the amplifier system and are configured to provide control of operating parameters of the amplifier system. An optional second harmonic generator is supplied to increase the contrast ratio and reduce the minimum focal spot size. This amplifier system can be utilized for material processing applications.

According to one embodiment of the present invention there is provided a method of producing a sheet of flexible gelled ceramic and/or metallic containing material, comprising the steps of: (a) combining water, ceramic and/or metallic powder, polymer, plasticiser, water soluble cross-linking agent precursor and optional further components to produce a mixture; (b) applying the mixture to a suitable substrate to form a layer of desired dimensions; (c) exposing the layer to conditions suitable for cross-linking to occur. According to another embodiment of the present invention there is provided a method of producing a ceramic and/or metallic component comprising the steps of: (a) combining water, ceramic and/or metallic powder, polymer, plasticiser, water soluble cross-linking agent precursor and optional further components to produce a mixture; (b) applying the mixture to a suitable substrate to form a layer of desired dimensions; (c) exposing the layer to conditions suitable for cross-linking to occur; (d) optionally removing from the substrate a flexible gelled material obtained following step (c); (e) optionally drying the flexible gelled material; (f) processing the flexible gelled material to desired shape; (g) firing flexible gelled material of desired shape to produce a ceramic and/or metallic component. Preferably the ceramic and/or metallic component is a component of a fuel cell, photo-voltaic cell, multi-layered capacitor or other micro-electronic component, prosthetic or surgical devices, refractory equipment, fibre optic device or transmission equipment.

A method is provided for the internal processing of a transparent substrate in preparation for a cleaving step. The substrate is irradiated with a focused laser beam that is comprised of pulses having an energy and pulse duration selected to produce a filament within the substrate. The substrate is translated relative to the laser beam to irradiate the substrate and produce an additional filament at one or more additional locations. The resulting filaments form an array defining an internally scribed path for cleaving said substrate. Laser beam parameters may be varied to adjust the filament length and position, and to optionally introduce V-channels or grooves, rendering bevels to the laser-cleaved edges.; Preferably, the laser pulses are delivered in a burst train for lowering the energy threshold for filament formation, increasing the filament length, thermally annealing of the filament modification zone to minimize collateral damage, improving process reproducibility, and increasing the processing speed compared with the use of low repetition rate lasers.

A non-ablative method and apparatus for making an economical glass hard disk (platter) for a computer hard disk drive (HDD) using a material machining technique involving filamentation by burst ultrafast laser pulses. Two related methods disclosed, differing only in whether the glass substrate the HDD platter is to be cut from has been coated with all the necessary material layers to function as a magnetic media in a computer's hard drive. Platter blanks are precisely cut using filamentation by burst ultrafast laser pulses such that the blank's edges need not be ground, the platter's geometric circularity need not be corrected and there is no need for further surface polishing. Thus the platters can be cut from raw glass or coated glass. As a result, this method reduces the product contamination, speeds up production, and realizes great reductions in the quantity of waste materials and lower production costs.

A microwave plasma apparatus for processing a material includes a plasma chamber, a microwave radiation source, and a waveguide guiding microwave radiation from the microwave radiation source to the plasma chamber. A process gas flows through the plasma chamber and the microwave radiation couples to the process gas to produce a plasma jet. A process material is introduced to the plasma chamber, becomes entrained in the plasma jet, and is thereby transformed to a stream of product material droplets or particles. The product material droplets or particles are substantially more uniform in size, velocity, temperature, and melt state than are droplets or particles produced by prior devices.

Methods and apparatus for the deposition of a source material (10) are disclosed. An atomizer (12) renders a supply of source material (10) into many discrete particles. A force applicator (14) propels the particles in continuous, parallel streams of discrete particles. A collimator (16) controls the direction of flight of the particles in the stream prior to their deposition on a substrate (18). In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the viscosity of the particles may be controlled to enable complex depositions of non-conformal or three-dimensional surfaces. The invention also includes a wide variety of substrate treatments which may occur before, during or after deposition. In yet another embodiment of the invention, a virtual or cascade impactor may be employed to remove selected particles from the deposition stream. Also a method and apparatus for maskless deposition of copper lines on a target, specifically relating to localized solution-based deposition of copper using an annular aerosol jet and subsequent material processing using conventional thermal techniques or laser processing.

The disclosure is directed at a method and apparatus for integrated real-time monitoring and control of microstructure and/or geometry in thermal material processing (TMP) technologies. The method includes obtaining real-time thermal dynamic variables, such as, but not limited to the cooling rate, peak temperature and heating rate, and geometry of the thermal material process. These real-time thermal variables are then analyzed along with a thermal model to determine a microstructure/geometry model. This microstructure/geometry model can then be used to provide the real-time monitoring and control of a finished state for the material being processed by the thermal material processing procedure.